Japan Chugoku

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture and the largest city in the Chugoku region of western Honshu - the largest island of Japan. The city's name means "Broad Island" in Japanese. Hiroshima is best known as the first city in history to be targeted by a nuclear weapon when the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) dropped an atomic bomb on the city at 8:15 a.m. on August 6, 1945, near the end of World War II. Hiroshima has a humid subtropical climate characterized by mild winters and hot humid summers.

Tottori is the capital city of Tottori Prefecture in the Chugoku region of Japan. Within Japan the city is best known for its sand dunes which are a popular tourist attraction. The city's main street runs north from the station and terminates at the foot of the Kyushouzan mountain. Around this mountain lies the oldest part of the city. Its centre is the now ruined Tottori Castle. In the vicinity are temples, museums, and public parks. The city also hosts the Shan-shan festival in the summer, which features teams of people dressing up and dancing with large umbrellas. At the beginning of every summer, Tottori is host to one of the biggest beach parties in the country, the San In Beach Party.

Okayama is the capital city of Okayama Prefecture in the Chugoku region of Japan. Okayama Castle and Koraku-en are Okayama's most notable attractions. Okayama Castle was constructed in 1597 by Ukita Naoie, a Japanese feudal lord. It was destroyed by bombing in 1945 during World War II but reconstructed in 1966. Koraku-en, known as one of the three best traditional gardens in Japan, lies south of the castle grounds. Korakuen was constructed by Ikeda Tsunamasa over 14 years, and completed in 1700. Sogen-ji, a large Buddhist monastery belonging to the Rinzai sect, is located near the center of the city. Several of the abbots of major monasteries in Kyoto are from Sogen-ji.[

Kurashiki is a historic city located in western Okayama Prefecture, Japan. Kurashiki is the home of Japan's first museum for Western art, the Ohara Museum of Art. Established in 1930, it contains paintings by El Greco, Monet, Matisse, Gauguin, and Renoir. The collection also presents fine examples of Asian and contemporary art. The old merchant quarter is called the Bikan historical area. It contains many fine examples of 17th century wooden warehouses painted white with traditional black tiles, along a canal framed with weeping willows and filled with koi. The area has no electric poles in order to make it more closely resemble the look of the Meiji period.